Monday, May 22, 2006

nap-centric

It's bad enough (to non-baby people) that my life currently revolves around the whims and demands of a 9-month-old baby, but to be more precise, my days revolve around my her naps - or lack of. Ask me whether I'm having a good day, and my answer will depend on whether she's had one nap or three (or none), whether they seemed long enough to refresh her and whether any ear-splitting screaming was involved. And that's completely disregarding whether I got any sleep myself.

Today kazzer came to visit; it was the last time I'd see her before she and hubby leave the country and return to the UK.

I picked 2pm as a good time to come over, since Baby was most likely to have woken up from her afternoon nap by then (assuming she'd consented to one). Unfortunately, she was tired and grizzly again by the time kazzer turned up, so we had to take a spontaneous drive around the bays.

It was just as well that it was a beautifully sunny, warm day and perfect for cruising along the coast. The deep blue of the sea and sky, and rich green of the mountains helped distract us from Baby's back-seat crying while we tried to fit in a whole future's worth of gossip. Then, Baby finally fell asleep (it took over half an hour) and I could finally relax and enjoy my friend's company.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Violet,
I'm exactly the same lately. I stopped swaddling Eve last week and now her naps are all over the place. She's down to about 30 minutes in the afternoon and she's exhausted by bed-time. THankfully she's still sleeping at night but my mood definitely reflects her lack of nappage. So you spent time in Edinburgh? I've never been to Scotland. We go to Cornwall most years and it is beautiful there. THis year is a working holiday as I'm singing in a play at the Minack theatre, which is open-air and built into the cliff face near LAnd's End. Just wanted you to know you're not alone with the nap thing. Eve had her 8-month-check-up today and apparently anything from 20 minutes upwards is "normal" for naps, but it doesn't feel like "normal" to me as it's just not enough time to cook, clean and have a cup of tea!!
:-)
Beth and Eve

Violet said...

We haven't wrapped Baby up since she started sleeping in Grobags, at about four months. Perhaps she'd have napped better if we'd kept it up? Scotland is really beautiful, but the weather is not too good so you might be better off in Cornwall! You're so lucky you can sing. My tunelessness doesnt stop me from singing to Baby, but I've been booed off the stage at a karaoke in the past. Eve will probably get used to having her arms free and start napping normally again. Unfortunately for us, Baby's "normal" is all over the place...

boudica of suburbia said...

Must get very testing. We're allowed to say that aren't we? Too many people pretend motherhood is a bed of roses, methinks.

xxB

Violet said...

boudica: I hope so! I do often wonder whether people who read this blog think I'm having a really bad time of it and perhaps regret the decision. But my regret is that I'm not physically younger and better able to handle the sleeplessness etc.

Kazzer said...

I enjoyed the day and I think your baby is extremely cute.
I think your blog must be very comforting for other mothers.

Violet said...

kazzer: I enjoyed it too - I really hope it isn't the last I see of you. My blog probably makes other mums thank the gods their own babies sleep (even if they are less cute).